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1,478 results for “coral reefs”
FIG. 8 in Review of Australian Species of Paracheilinus Fourmanoir (Teleostei: Labridae), with Description of a New Species from the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea
FIG. 8. Select individuals of Paracheilinus flavianalis demonstrating variability in the number of dorsal-fin filaments, coloration of anal fin, and spot band pattern on the anal fin. (A) Underwater photograph from Triton Bay, Indonesia; (B) underwater photograph from Wakatobi, Sulawesi, Indonesia; (C–D) underwater photographs from Bali, Indonesia. Photographs by R. Smith (A); J. Castellano (B); W. Osborn (C); and R. H. Kuiter (D).
Data from: Deep COI sequencing of standardized benthic samples unveils overlooked diversity of Jordanian coral reefs in the Northern Red Sea
High-Throughput Sequencing (HTS) of DNA barcodes (metabarcoding), particularly when combined with standardized sampling protocols, is one of the most promising approaches for censusing overlooked cryptic invertebrate communities. We present biodiversity estimates based on sequencing of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) gene for coral reefs of the Gulf of Aqaba, a semi-enclosed system in the Northern Red Sea. Samples were obtained from standardized sampling devices [Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structures (ARMS)] deployed for 18 months. DNA barcoding of non-sessile specimens >2mm revealed 83 OTUs in six phyla, of which only 25% matched a reference sequence in public databases. Metabarcoding of the 2mm-500μm and sessile bulk fractions revealed 1197 OTUs in 15 animal phyla, of which only 4.9% matched reference barcodes. These results highlight the scarcity of COI data for cryptobenthic organisms of the Red Sea. Compared with data obtained using similar methods, our results suggest that Gulf of Aqaba reefs are less diverse than two Pacific coral reefs but much more diverse than an Atlantic oyster reef at a similar latitude. The standardized approaches used here show promise for establishing baseline data on biodiversity, monitoring the impacts of environmental change, and quantifying patterns of diversity at regional and global scales.
Deficits in functional trait diversity following recovery on coral reefs
<p>The disturbance regimes of ecosystems are changing, and prospects for continued recovery remain unclear. New assemblages with altered species composition may be functionally deficient. Alternatively, key functional traits may be sustained by species that replace those in decline (response diversity). Here, we quantify the recovery and response diversity of coral assemblages using case studies of disturbance in three locations. Despite return trajectories of coral cover, the original assemblages with diverse functional attributes failed to recover at each location. Response diversity and the reassembly of trait space was limited, and varied according to biogeographical differences in the attributes of dominant, rapidly recovering species. The deficits in recovering assemblages identified here suggest that the return of coral cover cannot assure the reassembly of reef trait diversity, and that shortening intervals between disturbances can limit recovery among functionally important species.</p>
Data from: Plastic waste associated with disease on coral reefs
Plastic waste can promote microbial colonization by pathogens implicated in outbreaks of disease in the ocean. We assessed the influence of plastic waste on disease risk in 124,000 reef-building corals from 159 reefs in the Asia-Pacific region. The likelihood of disease increases from 4% to 89% when corals are in contact with plastic. Structurally complex corals are eight times more likely to be affected by plastic, suggesting that microhabitats for reef-associated organisms and valuable fisheries will be disproportionately affected. Plastic levels on coral reefs correspond to estimates of terrestrial mismanaged plastic waste entering the ocean. We estimate that 11.1 billion plastic items are entangled on coral reefs across the Asia-Pacific and project this number to increase 40% by 2025. Plastic waste management is critical for reducing diseases that threaten ecosystem health and human livelihoods.
Data from: Nutrient pollution disrupts key ecosystem functions on coral reefs
There is a long history of examining the impacts of nutrient pollution and pH on coral reefs. However, little is known about how these two stressors interact and influence coral reef ecosystem functioning. Using a six-week nutrient addition experiment, we measured the impact of elevated nitrate (NO3) and phosphate (PO43) on net community calcification (NCC) and net community production (NCP) rates of individual taxa and combined reef communities. Our study had four major outcomes: 1) NCC rates declined in response to nutrient addition in all substrate types; 2) the mixed community switched from net calcification to net dissolution under medium and high nutrient conditions; 3) nutrients augmented pH variability through modified photosynthesis and respiration rates; and 4) nutrients disrupted the relationship between NCC and aragonite saturation state documented in ambient conditions. These results indicate that the negative effect of NO3 and PO43 addition on reef calcification is likely both a direct physiological response to nutrients and also an indirect response to a shifting pH environment from altered NCP rates. Here, we show that nutrient pollution could make reefs more vulnerable to global changes associated with ocean acidification and accelerate the predicted shift from net accretion to net erosion.
Data from: Giant coral reef fishes display markedly different susceptibility to night spearfishing
The humphead wrasse (Cheilinus undulatus) and bumphead parrotfish (Bolbometopon muricatum) are two of the largest, most iconic fishes of Indo-Pacific coral reefs. Both species form prized components of subsistence and commercial fisheries and are vulnerable to overfishing. C. undulatus is listed as Endangered and B. muricatum as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. We investigated how night spearfishing pressure and habitat associations affected both species in a relatively lightly exploited setting; the Kia fishing grounds, Isabel Province, Solomon Islands. We used fisheries-independent data from underwater visual census surveys and negative binomial models to estimate abundances of adult C. undulatus and B. muricatum as a function of spearfishing pressure and reef strata. Our results showed that, in Kia, night spearfishing pressure from free divers had no measurable effect on C. undulatus abundances, but abundances of B. muricatum were 3.6 times lower in areas of high spearfishing pressure, after accounting for natural variations due to habitat preferences. It is likely the species' different nocturnal aggregation behaviours, combined with the fishers' use of night spearfishing by spot-checking underpin these species' varying susceptibility. Our study highlights that B. muricatum is extremely susceptible to night spearfishing; however, we do not intend to draw conservation attention away from C. undulatus. Our data relate only to the Kia fishing grounds, where human population density is low, the spot-checking strategy is effective for reliably spearing large numbers of fish, particularly B. muricatum, and fisheries have only recently begun to be commercialised; such conditions are increasingly rare. Instead, we recommend that regional managers assess the state of their fisheries and the dynamics affecting the vulnerability of the fishes to fishing pressure based on local-scale, fisheries-independent data, where resources permit.
Data from: Genetic diversity, clonality and connectivity in the scleractinian coral Pocillopora damicornis: a multi-scale analysis in an insular, fragmented reef system
Clonality and genetic structure of the coral Pocillopora damicornis sensu lato were assessed using five microsatellites in 12 populations from four islands of the Society Archipelago (French Polynesia) sampled in June 2008. The 427 analysed specimens fell into 132 multilocus genotypes (MLGs), suggesting that asexual reproduction plays an important role in the maintenance of these populations. A haploweb analysis of ITS2 sequences of each MLG was consistent with all of them being conspecific. Genetic differentiation was detected both between and within islands, but when a single sample per MLG was included in the analyses, the populations turned out to be nearly panmictic. These observations provide further evidence of the marked variability in reproductive strategies and genetic structure of P. damicornis throughout its geographic range; comparison with results previously obtained for the congeneric species Pocillopora meandrina underlines the importance of life history traits in shaping the genetic structure of coral populations.
Data from: A unified model explains commonness and rarity on coral reefs
Abundance patterns in ecological communities have important implications for biodiversity maintenance and ecosystem functioning. However, ecological theory has been largely unsuccessful at capturing multiple macroecological abundance patterns simultaneously. Here, we propose a parsimonious model that unifies widespread ecological relationships involving local aggregation, species-abundance distributions, and species associations, and we test this model against the metacommunity structure of reef-building corals and coral reef fishes across the western and central Pacific. For both corals and fishes, the unified model simultaneously captures extremely well local species-abundance distributions, interspecific variation in the strength of spatial aggregation, patterns of community similarity, species accumulation, and regional species richness, performing far better than alternative models also examined here and in previous work on coral reefs. Our approach contributes to the development of synthetic theory for large-scale patterns of community structure in nature, and to addressing ongoing challenges in biodiversity conservation at macroecological scales.
Data from: Alternative functional strategies and altered carbon pathways facilitate broad depth ranges in coral-obligate reef fishes
Spatial refuges in peripheral habitats will become increasingly important for species persistence as climate change and other disturbances progressively impact habitat quality and assemblage compositions. However, the capacity for persistence will be determined in part by species‐specific abilities to absorb costs related to altered or decreased quantities and quality of resources at range peripheries. We compared variations in dietary strategies and energy acquisition trade‐offs along depth gradients in two obligate corallivores that differ in level of diet specialization. We also assessed depth‐related changes in energy pathways and energy content of their mixotrophic prey. We found no changes in feeding effort or total resource availability (total coral cover) towards deep range margins, but availability of the preferred resource (Acropora coral) decreased. While both species selectively targeted Acropora, the more specialized species (Chaetodon baronessa) exhibited limited feeding plasticity along the depth gradient. The degree of selectivity towards the preferred coral increased rather than decreased with depth, being 40 times greater than expected, given availability, at their range periphery. In contrast, the generalist's diet (Chaetodon octofasciatus) varied greatly in response to changes in resource availability with depth. Unexpectedly, the energy content of Acropora did not decline with depth, likely due to increased coral heterotrophy in deeper water, indicated by shifts in their molecular isotope geochemistry. This shift was accompanied by a 20% increase in plankton‐sourced carbon in the muscle tissue of deep‐resident fish, despite no observations of direct feeding on plankton food sources. Our results indicate that deep ranges in coral‐obligate reef fishes are supported by multiple mechanisms of trophic versatility in both the fish and corals. This nutritional plasticity likely serves a compensatory role in the resilience and eventual adaptation of organisms at their range peripheries. For species vulnerable to increasing anthropogenic impacts at range cores, variable and multi‐trophic functional responses can act to buffer against costs and increase the refuge potential of range peripheries. Specialist consumers may also be supported indirectly at range margins via trophic plasticity within their preferred prey.
Data from: Motivations, success and cost of coral reef restoration
Coral reef restoration is an increasingly important part of tropical marine conservation. Information about what motivates coral reef restoration as well as its success and cost is not well understood but needed to inform restoration decisions. We systematically review and synthesise data from mostly scientific studies published in peer‐reviewed and grey literature on the motivations for coral reef restoration, the variables measured, outcomes reported, the cost per hectare of the restoration project, the survival of restored corals, the duration of the project and its overall spatial extent depending on the restoration technique employed. The main motivation to restore coral reefs for the projects assessed was to further our ecological knowledge and improve restoration techniques, with coral growth, productivity and survival being the main variables measured. The median project cost was 400,000 US$ ha‐1 (2010 US$), ranging from 6,000 US$ ha‐1 for the nursery phase of coral gardening to 4,000,000 US$ ha‐1 for substrate addition to build an artificial reef. Restoration projects were mostly of short duration (1‐2 years) and over small spatial extents (0.01 ha or 108 m2). Median reported survival of restored corals was 60.9%. Future research to survey practitioners who do not publish their discoveries would complement this work. Our findings and database provide critical data to inform future research in coral reef restoration.
Data from: Population genomics of local adaptation versus speciation in coral reef fishes (Hypoplectrus spp, Serranidae)
Are the population genomic patterns underlying local adaptation and the early stages of speciation similar? Addressing this question requires a system in which i. local adaptation and the early stages of speciation can be clearly identified and distinguished, ii. the amount of genetic divergence driven by the two processes is similar, and iii. comparisons can be repeated both taxonomically (for local adaptation) and geographically (for speciation). Here, we report just such a situation in the hamlets (Hypoplectrus spp), brightly colored reef fishes from the wider Caribbean. Close to 100,000 SNPs genotyped in 126 individuals from three sympatric species sampled in three repeated populations provide genome-wide levels of divergence that are comparable among allopatric populations (Fst estimate = 0.0042) and sympatric species (Fst estimate = 0.0038). Population genetic, clustering and phylogenetic analyses reveal very similar patterns for local adaptation and speciation, with a large fraction of the genome undifferentiated (Fst estimate ≈ 0), a very small proportion of Fst outlier loci (0.05-0.07%), and remarkably few repeated outliers (1-3). Nevertheless, different loci appear to be involved in the two processes in Hypoplectrus, with only 7% of the most differentiated SNPs and outliers shared between populations and species comparisons. In particular, a tropomyosin (Tpm4) and a previously identified hox (HoxCa) locus emerge as candidate loci (repeated outliers) for local adaptation and speciation, respectively. We conclude that marine populations may be locally adapted notwithstanding shallow levels of genetic divergence, and that from a population genomic perspective this process does not appear to differ fundamentally from the early stages of speciation.
Figure 3 in Coral reef tanaidacean assemblages along the SW and SE Gulf of Mexico: biodiversity, geographic distribution and community structure
Figure 3. Dendrograms of each sampling site and grouping of sampling sites with spatial analysis of non-metric multidimensional scaling (MDS) obtained with a dissimilarity matrix using Bray–Curtis indices. Area Natural Protegida Tuxpan–Lobos (ANPT–L), Parque Nacional Sistema Arrecifal Veracruzano (PNSAV) and Sistema Arrecifal Bajos Sisal (SABS).
Figure 1 in Coral reef tanaidacean assemblages along the SW and SE Gulf of Mexico: biodiversity, geographic distribution and community structure
Figure 1. Location of reef systems in the Gulf of Mexico. Area Natural Protegida Tuxpan–Lobos (ANPT–L), Parque Nacional Sistema Arrecifal Veracruzano (PNSAV) and Sistema Arrecifal Bajos Sisal (SABS).
Figure 1 in Coral reef benthic assemblages of a Marine Protected Area in eastern Brazil: effect of reef habitats on the spatial pattern of species
Figure 1. Location of the Marine Park Recife de Fora within Brazil and south Bahia (left) and map of the study area with sampling stations.
Figure 5 in Coral reef benthic assemblages of a Marine Protected Area in eastern Brazil: effect of reef habitats on the spatial pattern of species
Figure 5. Benthic cover of six major organisms/categories based on the SIMPER test along the reef assemblages recorded in the Marine Park Recife de Fora between February 2008 and January 2009. (a) Halophila decipiens; (b) fleshy macroalgae; (c) turf algae; (d) crustose coralline algae; (e) Millepora alcicornis; (f) Siderastrea spp.
Figure 4 in Coral reef benthic assemblages of a Marine Protected Area in eastern Brazil: effect of reef habitats on the spatial pattern of species
Figure 4. Batimetric profile across the Marine Park Recife de Fora, showing changes in per cent cover of major benthic organisms/categories across the reef habitats.
Figure 3 in Coral reef benthic assemblages of a Marine Protected Area in eastern Brazil: effect of reef habitats on the spatial pattern of species
Figure 3. Multidimensional scaling (NMDS) of benthic assemblages (relative cover of different organisms/categories) based on Chord similarities. (A) Samples classified according to sectors; (B) samples classified according to habitat. Habitats: ALG – algal slope, BAC – back reef, CHA – reef channel, FLA – reef flat, FOR – fore reef, PAT – patch reef, TID – tidal pool and UNC – unconsolidated substrate.
Figure 2 in Coral reef benthic assemblages of a Marine Protected Area in eastern Brazil: effect of reef habitats on the spatial pattern of species
Figure 2. Map of the geomorphologic classification of Voronoi polygons in the Marine Park Recife de Fora (adapted from Arantes and Seoane 2017).
Figure 3 in Diversity in the diet of the predator Octopus cyanea in the coral reef system of Moorea, French Polynesia
Figure 3. Correlates of diversity in the diet of Octopus cyanea at each of five sampling sites. Dietary diversity (as midden species richness) was positively correlated with diversity of substrate types across the site (top) and with increasing octopus density (bottom). Each point represents all octopuses at a single site. N indicates the number of prey individuals represented by remains at each site.
Figure 1 in Diversity in the diet of the predator Octopus cyanea in the coral reef system of Moorea, French Polynesia
Figure 1. Locations of four nearshore fringing reef sites surveyed for octopuses on the island of Moore'a, adjacent to Tahiti, French Polynesia. The Gump site was located at the Richard B. Gump South Pacific Research Station. Insets indicate the spatial arrangements of dens at two sites: circles indicate dens by marker ID; connecting lines indicate the distance to adjacent dens (in metres, not to scale). Blank line maps of Tahiti and Moorea, and globe used with permission from WorldAtlas.com and FreeUSandWorldmaps.com; den inset by TL.
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Allen Brain Atlas
Allen Brain Atlas is an Allen Institute collection of brain map atlases, datasets, APIs, and analysis tools covering mouse, human, and non-human primate brain resources.
Annotated Behaviour and Observability Dataset (ABODe)
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DANDI Archive for NWB datasets
DANDI is a BRAIN Initiative archive for publishing and sharing neurophysiology data, including electrophysiology, optophysiology, and behavioral data packaged as NWB and related standards.
International Brain Laboratory public data
The International Brain Laboratory public data releases expose standardized mouse decision-making experiments, including Neuropixels recordings, widefield calcium imaging, behavior, and session metadata accessed through the ONE API.
OpenNeuro
OpenNeuro is a free, open platform for sharing neuroimaging datasets, with public search, dataset pages, and download paths for web, S3, DataLad, and the OpenNeuro CLI.